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  1. Home /
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  3. English Dictionary /
  4. isolated incident

isolated incident

/ˈaɪsəleɪtɪd ˈɪnsɪdənt/
a single event that is not part of a pattern

The police described the shooting as an isolated incident.

The shooting was a single event, not part of a larger pattern of violence.


Law
formal

an event that occurs alone and is not connected to other similar events

The company reported the data breach as an isolated incident.

The data breach was a single event, not part of a series of security failures.

Often used in legal, security, or corporate contexts to downplay the significance of an event.

Collocations

isolated incident of violencea single violent event not part of a patternisolated incident reporta document describing a single, unrelated event

Synonyms

one-time eventsingle occurrencestandalone event

Antonyms

patterntrendseries of events

Related Phrases

one-offphrase
a single, non-repeating event
pattern of behaviorphrase
a repeated sequence of actions

Pro Tip

Context Matters

This phrase is often used to minimize concern, so check for bias in reporting.

Gold Rule

Legal Use

In legal contexts, 'isolated incident' may imply lack of liability or pattern.

Word Origin

From 'isolated' (separated) + 'incident' (event), combining to describe a lone event.

Usage Notes

Often used to reassure the public or stakeholders that an event is not part of a larger problem.

Word Breakdown

isolated
separate or alone
adjective
+
incident
an event or occurrence
noun
English Dictionary
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